Show & Tell (6 page)

She just wanted.

Savannah swallowed another frustrated wail. She'd kept her distance, hadn't she? She'd even made herself dislike him, all in an effort to avoid this very predicament. All of that hard work for this beautiful mess.

Even if the talk of sex finally sparked some latent interest in him, he'd never be so pathetically unprofessional as to act upon it. For reasons Savannah didn't understand, this particular story was incredibly important to him. He'd coerced her into coming, after all. He'd never jeopardize the story, regardless of how much he might like to overthrow his traditional tastes and take her for a quick tumble between the sheets.

So she needed to put the whole idea out of her mind. She'd forget that damned kiss and pray they wouldn't have to participate in that madness again. She'd ignore the enormous penis draped across his
thigh beneath that
kurta
and her own beaded nipples and moist sex and…

And, Savannah realized with mounting frustration, she'd undoubtedly end up masturbating the entire weekend, just like poor oversexed Chuck.

“Hey,” Knox said as he gently nudged her in the side. “I thought I told you to take notes. You stopped at the genital chakra.”

That seemed appropriate, Savannah thought. “Sorry,” she mumbled.

“Don't worry about it. We've got to go over all of it and work on unblocking as many chakras as we can tonight for homework. At the end of this lesson we move on to building trust between partners and the art of erotic massage.” Knox waggled his brows suggestively. “They have scented massage oil in the gift shop.”

Six and a half feet of gloriously oiled, aroused male loomed in her mind's eye. “Great,” she managed to deadpan. “You can rub it all over yourself.”

Shaking his head, Knox tsked under his breath. “Now what could we possibly learn from that? How can we do this story justice without at least trying some of the techniques?”

She couldn't fault his reasoning, though that was her first impulse. Still, if they tried one, she'd want to try them all. Which meant it would be best to forgo the whole lot. “I suppose you should have thought of that before you hauled me to a sex workshop.”

“Who said anything about having sex? It's just a massage. Are you planning on giving this story anything but your best objective opinion?”

Savannah bristled. “Of course not.”

“Then it's a no-brainer,” he said with a negligent shrug. “Tell you what, I'll go you one better and do you first. How does that sound?”

Like torture, Savannah thought. Delicious torture, but torture all the same. “Whatever.” She gestured toward the Sheas. “They're about to conclude the lesson. Shut up and pay attention.”

“In a few moments we'll take a short break, and then we'll move on to part one of our erotic massage lesson,” Edgar said. “Before we stop, however, let's take a moment to quietly reflect and connect with our lovers.”

Oh, hell, Savannah thought with a premonition of dread. That didn't sound good.

“Everyone please stand,” Rupali instructed. “For some, this is a very difficult exercise, but Edgar and I didn't promise that this weekend would be easy. The level of intimacy we want our students to achieve requires that fears and inadequacies be set aside, that the true self be revealed.”

Savannah resisted the urge to squirm. It was sounding worse.

“One of the simplest ways to do that is to maintain eye contact, to search your partner's eyes and reveal past hurts, regrets, happiness and love.” Rupali paused and gauged the room's reaction to her words.
“In time, you will be able to look into your partner's eyes and see your
Imago,
or mirror image, reflected back at you. While you might be uncomfortable now, the longer you practice tantra, the more you strive for a more spiritual union, you will eventually learn to prize this very special connection.”

Edgar set the timer on his watch. “Men, pull your women to you, so that their heart beats against your chest. So that you can feel the steady rhythm of her life force thumping against you.”

Knox, damn him, didn't appear the least bit annoyed or uncomfortable by this new test as, smiling, he did as Edgar instructed and pulled her firmly up against the hard wall of his magnificent chest.

With a decidedly sick smile, Savannah's own heart threatened to pound right through her ribcage. In addition to feeling Knox's heartbeat, she felt the telltale ridge of his “wand of light” against her belly button and, to her eternal chagrin, her “sacred space” swiftly grew warm and wet. If he'd branded her with the damned thing, she couldn't have felt it more.

“Now, women, wrap your arms about your man's waist. Wrap him in your love. Let him see it.” Edgar chuckled. “It's true men are visual creatures. They have to see to believe. Make him
believe.
”

“For the next ninety seconds,” Rupali said, “we're going to stand together and gaze into each other's eyes. Blink if you must, but try to maintain eye contact. Don't look away and do not speak. Say
it with your eyes, use your brow chakra to learn your lover's secrets. You may begin…now.”

Feeling utterly and completely ridiculous, not to mention incredibly uncomfortable, Savannah did as Rupali said and looked up into Knox's twinkling green eyes. Commiserating laughter lurked in that verdant gaze, Savannah noticed to her marginal relief. She quelled the desire to squirm. Her breasts had already tightened into hard little buds and if she moved as she wished to, she might not be able to stop. Pathetic, but true.

Knox's eyes were heavy lidded, with long, curling lashes. The green was pure, just flecked with lighter and darker hues, but no shades of brown commonly found in a color as dark as his. Some of the humor faded from his gaze and another indiscernible emotion took its place. Something heavy and intense and altogether sexy. Savannah pulled in an unsteady breath. She thought she saw a reciprocating heat, but knew that couldn't be the case. Simply wishful thinking on her part.

Still, the longer the stare went on—Jesus, who would have thought that a minute and a half would seem like a lifetime?—the more aroused she became. Her limbs had grown heavy and she'd transferred some of the weight by leaning more closely into him. She had the almost overpowering urge to lower her gaze to his lips, then let her own mouth follow that path.

If she lived to be one hundred, she didn't think she'd ever want to kiss a man more.

The desire was completely out of the realm of her limited experience. The pressing need built and built until the longing and weight of that heady stare seemed almost unbearable. Savannah felt herself sagging closer and closer to him and, though she knew better, she simply didn't possess the strength to stop it. If this didn't end soon, she'd—

“Time's up,” Edgar called, and the group underneath the pavilion heaved a collective sigh. “Now kiss your lover, then we'll adjourn for a break.”

A relief of another sort gripped Savannah and she eagerly met Knox's mouth as it descended hungrily to hers. The unmistakable—enormous—length of him nudged her navel and, rather than be alarmed, which would have been the intelligent reaction, Savannah merely smiled against his mouth and thought,
Oh, thank God, I'm not the only one, after all.

Knox Webber could claim he wasn't attracted to her, but she'd just been presented with some hard evidence that proved otherwise.

Granted, men awoke with a hard-on, and could typically get it up for just about any woman. His reaction was likely due to part of the intense lesson and all the talk of genital chakras, but for this moment—
just this one
—she would pretend otherwise. Savannah generally avoided lying to herself at all costs, but surely this one little fib couldn't hurt. Right?

It's not like she'd ever be so cork-brained as to delude herself into thinking that he felt anything but mild disdain toward her. She may have been able to turn on his “wand of light,” but when it came to generating any real interest, the lights were off and no one was home.

K
NOX STARED DOWN
into Savannah's ice-blue gaze and the effect of that cool stare left him anything but chilly. The first fifteen to twenty seconds of their so-called exercise she'd been adorably shy, utterly miserable and obviously so far out of her comfort zone he'd found himself smiling to reassure her.

Knox was a man who always questioned everything—that insatiable curiosity had prompted his career choice. Savannah's reaction to this particular test raised many questions, the most pressing of which was, who or what had happened to her to make her so damned distrustful? Because something definitely had.

At some point in her life, or perhaps repeatedly, she'd been deeply hurt. Betrayed. The knowledge made his mind momentarily go black with rage and the unreasonable urge to right old wrongs for her, heal old hurts.

How could he have been so blind? He could see the truth now, hovering beneath the bravado, beneath the sarcasm, and he wondered again how he'd ever missed it in the first place. Knox mentally snorted.
Hell, he knew how. She'd never let him close enough. Never let anyone close enough, for that matter.

To be honest, Knox hadn't been thrilled with the prospect of another test, but when Edgar had instructed them to wrap their arms about their woman, Knox had grown decidedly more enthusiastic about the lesson. He'd watched her emotions flash like neon signs through her eyes and the one that finally managed to completely undo him was passion.

Those cool blue eyes had rapidly warmed until they glowed like a blue flame. A resulting heat swept him from the top of his head to the tips of his bare toes. His heart had begun to pound, sending the blood that much faster to his throbbing groin. The hairs on his arms prickled and the nudge he normally associated with work began an insistent jab.

As the seconds ticked by, Savannah gravitated closer and closer to him until he could feel her budded nipples against his chest. Could feel the rhythmic beating of her heart as the Sheas had instructed. Feeling that rapid, steady beat did have a curious effect on him, Knox conceded. He'd never thought much about his heart, other than being aware that it pumped his blood, but something about feeling hers made him want to pull an Alfalfa, cancel his membership in the He-Man-Woman-Hater's Club and beat his chest and roar. He'd made her heart pound. Him. What a turn-on.

Knowing that she was naked underneath that
gown, that nothing more than a thin wisp of cotton separated his skin from hers tortured him, made his hands itch to feel her through the fabric. Knox pulled in a shaky breath and quelled the almost overwhelming urge to back her onto the picnic table, hike up that
kurta
and bury himself into the slick velvet heat of her body. Piston in and out of her until their simultaneous cries of release rent the air and he spilled his seed deep into the tight glove of her body.

Clearly he'd lost his mind, to be having such thoughts about Savannah. They were here to do a job, nothing more, and yet he'd give everything he owned right now just to kiss her. Just to taste her. Just one small—

“Time's up,” Edgar called. “Now kiss your lover and we'll adjourn for a break.”

Kiss your lover…

Knox groaned with giddy relief and quickly lowered his mouth to hers. To his immense delight, Savannah met him halfway and her mouth clung to his, fed greedily until nothing existed but the feel of her against him, the exquisite taste of her on his tongue.

What the kiss lacked in finesse it more than made up for with passion. She lashed her arms about his neck and all but crawled up his body to get closer, ran her hands all over him, cupped his ass and growled her approval right into his mouth. She eagerly explored his mouth, slid her tongue around his, tasted the fleshy part of his lips. She nibbled and sucked, and it occurred to Knox that, at some point
in the near future, he'd like to have her do the same thing to his rod. She wriggled and writhed, alternately sighed and purred with pleasure and each little note of praise caused
both
of his heads to swell, particularly the one below his waist. It jutted impatiently against her.

He might as well have jabbed her with a hot poker, for the way she abruptly tore her mouth from his and stepped back. With a frustrated huff, she looked up and glared at him. “Good grief, Knox,” she hissed. “You're supposed to be impotent. Could you at least try to stay in character?”

Knox blinked, astounded. In character? She'd been acting? Again?

Savannah looked down at the front of his tented
kurta.
Her lips curled into that oh-so-familiar mocking smile. “Well, at least the premature ejaculator part looks real. You've got a huge wet spot on the front of your dress.”

Mortified, Knox felt a blush creep up his neck. “It's not a dress,” he ground out.

Luckily the rest of the class had moved toward the refreshment table, which had been set up on the lawn. Only the Sheas lagged behind. To his further humiliation, the two of them noticed the evidence of his mortification and smiled knowingly.

“I see you've made progress already,” Edgar said. “Embrace your healing, Knox,” Edgar encouraged with a fatherly clap on the shoulder. “There's no
shame in flaunting your seed. There is power in procreation.”

Rupali gestured toward Savannah's pearled nipples. “Likewise, Barbie,” she said mistily. “You should be proud of your puckered breasts. They await your lover's kiss with tight invitation. Someday the milk of life will pour from those twin orbs. Flaunt them, as Edgar said.” She smiled serenely, cupped her own breasts reverently. “Embrace your femininity. Be proud of being a woman.”

Having blushed to the roots of her hair, Savannah managed a strained smile and nodded mutely. The Sheas threaded their fingers together and walked away, presumably to offer more little bits of tantric wisdom to other students.

Enjoying her discomfort, Knox smiled. “I see I'm not the only one who had a hard time staying in character.”

Savannah closed her notebook and clipped her pen to the front. She gave him a blank look. “I'm sorry, what?”

“Staying in character,” he repeated. “I'm not the only one who got hard.” He stared pointedly at her breasts.

She gave him a frosty glare and her lips formed a withering smirk. “I was cold, you moron. What's your excuse?”

His eyes narrowed. “Your tongue was in my mouth.”

“And less of yours was in mine this time. Well
done, Knox. It's nice to know I'm not going to be choking on yours the entire weekend.”

No one could deliver a backhanded compliment quite like Savannah. Knox ignored the gibe and refused to let her change the subject. “You were not cold. You were hot,
damn hot,
and I could feel you.”

“How could you not feel me?” she asked, her voice climbing. “Edgar made us practically crawl into each other's
kurta
s. Basic physiological fact, Knox. The human body's normal temperature is ninety-eight-point-six degrees. That's hot and that's what you felt. End of story.”

The hell it was, Knox thought, but whatever. He didn't know what sort of insanity was eating at his brain to make him want to force her into admitting that something had happened between them. She was right to play it down. Keep it professional. He'd play it her way.

Or maybe not.

Knox shoved a hand through his hair and sighed heavily. “You're right. It is a little chilly out here today.” Another lie. It was a pleasant seventy, at least.

Her gaze flew to his. “I'm right?” she asked, then nodded emphatically. “Right. Of course, I am.”

Knox suppressed a triumphant smile. So it was okay for her to lie about the attraction and make him feel like a class-A jackass, but apparently she didn't like wearing the shoe on the other foot.

Women,
Knox thought. Had the Lord ever made a
more fickle creature? This was a prime example of why he'd never decided to keep one around on a permanent basis. They said yes when they meant no, and no when they meant yes. Who needed the grief? The confusion? Knox kept in touch with a select few women who knew him and knew the drill. Great date, great conversation, great sex. No strings. Everybody went home happy.

He would reluctantly admit that at times he longed for a deeper relationship, something more like his parents had. But so far he hadn't found anybody he'd want to spend a solid week with, much less the rest of his life. He was too preoccupied with the present to contemplate the future, at any rate.

Savannah could lie to him—and probably herself—all she wanted, but Knox knew the truth. Cold, hell. She'd been hot for him. If that kiss had been any hotter, the two of them would have surely gone up in flames. He'd never been so turned on from a mere kiss. Savannah Reeves had one talented mouth and it made Knox wonder just what other hidden abilities she possessed, and made him all the more determined to find out.

Without question, this unplanned, unwanted attraction posed many problems. For instance, how were they supposed to get through the rest of the weekend without going insane with lust? If he and Savannah detonated with heat over a couple of kisses, what would happen when they moved on to erotic massage, to
Love His Lingam,
and
Sacred
Goddess Stimulation?
What would happen on Sunday night, when the rest of the class was putting all their new know-how into practice? Furthermore, and more important, how on earth would he be able to maintain the focus needed to pull together an objective story if all he could think about was how much he wanted to plant himself between her thighs?

The two of them locked in various depraved positions flitted rapid fire through Knox's mind—his own personal little porn show where he and Savannah starred in hedonistic orgasmic splendor. He'd read the
Kama Sutra.
In his mind's eye Knox had her all but standing on her head when Savannah abruptly tapped him on the arm.

“Pay attention,” she whispered. “They're about to resume the lecture.”

Knox started, then moved to sit back down at their table. Savannah took her place beside him and, thankfully, began to take notes while Edgar and Rupali lectured on the importance of trust and announced that they would be doing a couple more little exercises before the lesson concluded for the day. They would have a great deal of “homework” this first night and would be provided ample time to get it all done.

In addition, all evening meals would be served in their rooms, with special instructions on how to enjoy them. Rupali and Edgar shared a secret smile that inspired equal parts curiosity and apprehension.

Great, Knox thought, as a wave of trepidation and anticipation washed over him. As if he didn't have enough to worry about.

 

S
AVANNAH DIDN'T KNOW
what was worse—attending the nerve-racking classes, or being alone with Knox. By the time they'd finished that last trust exercise, which she'd failed miserably at and which had consequently been added to their considerable homework, Savannah's raw nerves had been ready to snap. She'd tried to play off that second kiss with Knox, but it hadn't worked. Not by any stretch of the imagination.

He'd known, damn him.

She could see it in the cocky tilt of his head and the even cockier curve of his splendid lips. As if that gigantic ego of his needed another reason to swell, Savannah thought derisively. Even if he hadn't known then, he would have by the end of that lesson. Edgar and Rupali were firm believers in the oral chakra and the powers of kissing. According to Edgar and Rupali, the act taught patience to the men and promoted sexual harmony for the women. They'd had them necking at the end of each additional test, as well as the conclusion of the lecture. To her helpless joy and consternation, she and Knox had practically stayed in a perpetual lip-lock the rest of the afternoon.

If that hadn't been enough to shake her generally stalwart fortitude, there had been the
homework.

When they'd returned to their room this afternoon,
they'd found several things awaiting them. Fresh
kurta
s, a new booklet that gave detailed information on how to unblock each of the chakras—and there was a lot more to it than even Savannah had realized—as well as instructions which had to be followed to the letter for the rest of the evening.

They were supposed to begin their evening with a shared bath.

Knox, damn him, had raised a hopeful eyebrow at this news, but Savannah had quickly disabused him of that notion.

The shared bath had also come with a few handy tips on how to enhance intimacy, like soaping your lover's body, washing each other's hair and light genital massage, along with the stern reminder that intercourse was forbidden.

Savannah had to admit that it sounded absolutely wonderful. That huge sunken marble tub might as well have had
Do It Here
written on little sticky notes scattered all over it—on the recessed steps, the back, the front and the side. It was a veritable Garden of Eden.

Furthermore, the idea of Knox's hands, slick with soap and hot water sliding all over her body was enough to send her heart rate into warp speed. Her palms actually tingled when she thought about giving him the same treatment, smoothing her own hands over the intriguing masculine landscape of his magnificent form. Over that incredible ass she'd finally
gotten her greedy little hands on this afternoon. Honestly, she'd almost climaxed from the thrill of it.

She'd said no to the bath when she'd wanted to say yes, but to do anything different would have been a complete overthrow of her principles.

One of them had to remain focused and, though he'd claimed he'd brought her here because he didn't find her attractive, apparently Knox's primitive base instincts had overridden her general lack of appeal because, since that second kiss, he'd made absolutely no attempt to hold back.